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Cass, Lewis

(Encyclopedia)Cass, Lewis, 1782–1866, American statesman, b. Exeter, N.H. He established (1802) himself as a lawyer in Zanesville, Ohio, became a member (1806) of the state legislature, and was U.S. marshal for O...

Battle of Britain

(Encyclopedia)Battle of Britain, in World War II, series of air battles between Great Britain and Germany, fought over Britain from Aug. to Oct., 1940. As a prelude to a planned invasion of England, the German Luft...

de La Renta, Oscar

(Encyclopedia)de La Renta, Oscar (Óscar Arístides de la Renta Fiallo) də lə räNˈtə, rĕnˈtə [key], 1932–2014, Dominican-American fashion designer, b. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He studied in Madr...

Albert I, king of the Belgians

(Encyclopedia)Albert I, 1875–1934, king of the Belgians (1909–34), nephew and successor of Leopold II. He married (1900) Elizabeth, a Bavarian princess. In World War I his heroic resistance (1914) to the German...

Inns of Court

(Encyclopedia)Inns of Court, collective name of the four legal societies in London that have the exclusive right of admission to the bar. These societies—Lincoln's Inn, Gray's Inn, the Inner Temple, and the Middl...

Hamilton, James, 3d earl of Arran

(Encyclopedia)Hamilton, James, 3d earl of Arran, 1530–1609, Scottish nobleman; son of James Hamilton, 2d earl of Arran. He spent some years (1550–58) as a soldier in France, but his espousal of Protestantism br...

John of Luxemburg

(Encyclopedia)John of Luxemburg, 1296–1346, king of Bohemia (1310–46). The son of Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII, he married Elizabeth, sister of Wenceslaus III of Bohemia, and in 1310 he was chosen king of Bohem...

Martha's Vineyard

(Encyclopedia)Martha's Vineyard vĭnˈyərd [key], island (1990 est. pop. 8,900), c.100 sq mi (260 sq km), SE Mass., separated from the Elizabeth Islands and Cape Cod by Vineyard and Nantucket sounds. As a result o...

Lang Lang

(Encyclopedia)Lang Lang, 1982–, Chinese virtuoso pianist. A child prodigy, he studied at the Central Music Conservatory, Beijing, and the Curtis Institute, Philadelphia. Noted for the romantic, emotive nature of ...

Bustamante, Sir Alexander

(Encyclopedia)Bustamante, Sir Alexander bŭsˌtəmănˈtē [key], 1884–1977, prime minister of Jamaica (1962–67). Born William Alexander Clarke, the son of an Irish father and a Jamaican mother, he was adopted...